G. M. v. Petsmart, Inc.

United States District Court, S.D. Indiana, Evansville Division

August 28, 2015

G. M. a Minor, TRISTA MCCOY individually, and in her capacity as Next Friend to G.M., a Minor, RICKEY MCCOY individually, and in his capacity as Next Friend to G.M., a Minor, Plaintiffs,v.PETSMART, INC., RAINBOW EXOTICS, INC., SLAM VENTURES, LTD. d/b/a the Mouse Farm, Defendants

For G.
M., a Minor, TRISTA MCCOY, individually, and in her capacity
as Next Friend to G.M., a Minor, RICKEY MCCOY, individually,
and in his capacity as Next Friend to G.M., a Minor,
Plaintiffs: Mark Kelly Phillips, MARK K. PHILLIPS, ATTORNEY
AT LAW, P.C., Boonville, IN.

Plaintiffs,
Trista McCoy, Rickey McCoy (" Plaintiffs" or "
the McCoys" ), as parents of G.M., brought the present
lawsuit against Defendants, PetSmart, Inc., Rainbow Exotics,
Inc. (" Rainbow" ), and Slam Ventures, Ltd. d/b/a
The Mouse Farm (" The Mouse Farm" ) after G.M.
suffered from rat bite fever allegedly contracted from the
pet rats his mother bought at PetSmart. The Defendants each
moved for summary judgment. The Plaintiffs have opposed each
motion, and the court heard oral argument on the motions on
August 17, 2015. After considering the motions, supporting
briefs and arguments of the parties, the court now GRANTS the
Defendants' motions.

I.
Background

On
September 9, 2011, Trista McCoy purchased two pet rats from a
PetSmart store located in Evansville, Indiana, to give to
their children. PetSmart purchased the rats from Rainbow
World, who purchased the rats from their breeder, The Mouse
Farm. At the time of the purchase from PetSmart, Trista
signed a Pet Sales Record & Customer Contract. Trista did not
read the Customer Contract, which contained warnings in
regards to several types of animals that may be purchased at
PetSmart.

In
March 2012, G.M. began complaining of fever, rashes, and
joint pain. His pediatrician, Dr. Pamela Rogers saw him at
that time. Dr. Rogers consulted the Red Book Atlas of
Pediatric Infectious Diseases to investigate G.M.'s
symptoms. She did not

Page 962

feel qualified to diagnose rat bite fever; as such, she
referred G.M. to Riley Children's Hospital ("
Riley" ) in Indianapolis, Indiana. On April 6, 2012,
G.M. was admitted to Riley based upon his complaints of
fever, rash, and joint pain. Dr. Kathleen Boyd diagnosed G.M.
with rat bite fever[1] and discharged him on April 7, 2012.

Plaintiffs
filed the present lawsuit against PetSmart, Rainbow World,
and The Mouse Farm as a result of G.M.'s diagnosis of rat
bite fever. Specifically, Plaintiffs seek damages under the
following theories: (1) products liability, (2) common law
negligence, (3) emotional distress, and (4) future damages.
Defendants, moving separately, each filed for summary
judgment.

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;II.
...

Our website includes the first part of the main text of the court's opinion.
To read the entire case, you must purchase the decision for download. With purchase,
you also receive any available docket numbers, case citations or footnotes, dissents
and concurrences that accompany the decision.
Docket numbers and/or citations allow you to research a case further or to use a case in a
legal proceeding. Footnotes (if any) include details of the court's decision. If the document contains a simple affirmation or denial without discussion,
there may not be additional text.

Buy This Entire Record For
$7.95

Download the entire decision to receive the complete text, official citation,
docket number, dissents and concurrences, and footnotes for this case.